MCP Asset Management is set to put its new team of traders from Millennium Management to work with a pair of hedge fund launches next month.

The Hong Kong-based firm lured Masakatsu Hayashi and three other members of Millennium's Singapore team last month. In May, the quartet will begin managing the Terra Grove Japan and Terra Grove Pan Asian funds, Bloomberg News reports; MCP hopes to raise a combined US$300 million for the funds within about a year.

The Pan Asian fund will invest in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, while the Japan fund hopes to profit from a recovery in Japanese stocks following a 17% loss last year. The new funds, both equity long/short statistical arbitrage strategies, will debut with about US$25 million and will close at the US$300 million target, until their capacity is increased by improvements in their trading models. Both will also feature high turnovers, with the Japan fund targeting 15% annualized returns and the Pan-Asia fund 20%.

"Many overseas investors are underweight Japan, and many bigger funds are already closed to new investors, so we're seeing some interest from those who want to have a Japan exposure," MCP CEO Tetsuo Ochi told Bloomberg.

MCP has engaged Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs as prime brokers for the two new funds.

Hayashi's team features Kohei Hayashi, Atsushi Kiyono and Akira Suzuki. Prior to joining Millennium, Masakatsu Hayashi was head of statistical arbitrage at Société Générale.

The Terra Grove funds aren't MCP's only new growth strategy. The firm has set up a strategic alliance with Woori Asset Management of South Korea to joining develop alternative investment products for Woori's clients.

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